Stronger North East – Connected

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As part of our connected North East commitment we campaign for investment in the region’s infrastructure ensuring that the region is connected both physically and digitally.  

We know that transport plays a key role in the North East connecting people to towns and city centres, education and job opportunities making the North region an attractive place in which to both invest and live.  

Our campaigning has achieved results such as our support for successful Metro fleet renewal bid, the redevelopment of Darlington station and Heathrow’s new runway, an important hub for our region. 

The pandemic has also highlighted the importance of digital connectivity. Everyone in our region must be able to rely on quality digital connectivity, with businesses supported to invest in new technology and upskilling staff which will help to increase productivity. 

During the pandemic we have been campaigning for support for our region’s airports to retain our international links so vital for investment and tourism. 

We have also been calling for investment to build on the region’s green infrastructure, including in sustainable transport and the energy sector. 

Case study – CityFibre 

Fast and reliable digital connectivity has become increasingly important to releasing the potential of our region. 

Chamber member CityFibre, the UK’s third national digital infrastructure platform, is installing reliable, full fibre networks across the North East, enabling homes to connect up to 45 times faster than average broadband speeds.  

With a current investment of over £250m building networks across Newcastle, North Tyneside and Middlesbrough and with Sunderland starting later this Summer, hundreds of thousands of people will soon have some of the best connectivity in the world. 

CityFibre has also recently formed a partnership with another Chamber member Thirteen Group, to connect 32,000 of its tenants to the Gigabit fibre network. 

Helen Ivison, Thirteen’s Asset Infrastructure Manager added: “We’re all using technology much more these days in our daily lives, at home, work and school. We also recognise how an improved digital experience can benefit the customer journey and that’s why at Thirteen, we’ve created MyThirteen, which provides customers with a convenient way to find and manage their home online all in one place.  

“We have no doubt that this exciting project will make a real difference to our customers now and those we attract in the future, and we look forward to continuing this partnership as CityFibre’s build enters the surrounding towns and cities.” 

Jason Legget, Regional Partnership Director for North East & Scotland for CityFibre said: “The demand for fast, reliable broadband is growing exponentially with many employees still working from home and more and more connected devices in our daily lives. Our current work is focussed on Newcastle, North Tyneside, Middlesbrough and Sunderland, then next year move on to Hartlepool, Redcar & Cleveland, Stockton, Gateshead and South Tyneside.”  

CityFibre works with local contractors IQA Elecnor based in Hebben and MAP Group in Stockton to construct the network. The full fibre network runs from dedicated fibre exchanges across the region using overhead telephone poles and underground ducts to link from its fibre network to individual premises. The project itself has created over 300 jobs both directly and in the supply chain. 

And the connectivity benefits will have a huge potential impact on the regional economy and business growth. Research by Regeneris commissioned by CityFibre for Newcastle shows over the next 15 years access to full fibre could unlock £22m in business productivity and innovation.  In addition, a further £22m could be driven from new start-ups and Smart City initiatives such as intelligent transport systems could add as much as £77m. 

Chamber comment on Northumberland Rail Investment

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Policy Adviser, Marianne O’Sullivan:

“We welcome the announcement of £34m to rapidly progress plans to reopen the Northumberland Line. The Chamber has long been campaigning for the reopening of the line and investment in our local rail links as part of the levelling up agenda. This will provide vital connectivity for Northumberland helping to regenerate areas and linking more people to job and employment opportunities.

“We are also supportive of the line as freight trains will still be able to access the Port of Blyth helping to expand the North East’s energy sector.

“The Northumberland Line will help to open up opportunities for investment and housing in new areas as well presenting an opportunity for the North East to encourage more sustainable travel and reduce congestion on some of our major roads. The plans to include multi-modal transport interchanges along the route will be essential to create an integrated transport plan to ensure that people can access the stations.”

Why the North East Runs on Rail

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The railways were born in the North East nearly 200 years ago. Ongoing investment in the industry will help it play a key role for the future, writes Jim Brewin, UK Country Lead for Hitachi Rail.

Our customer East Midlands Railway recently announced the name of their new Hitachi bi-mode train fleet that will be built at our North East factory in Newton Aycliffe.

A public competition selected the name Aurora – heralding a new dawn for passengers in a region commonly associated as the heart of the British rail industry.

Just as East Midlands Railway is celebrating an exciting future, so is the rail industry in the North East.

This is thanks largely to a decade of investment in British train building capabilities – not only with East Midlands Railway, but also the Intercity Express Programme (IEP).

We have recently finished manufacturing the last of our 122 IEP trains at our Country Durham facility – built in only five years by an incredible team.

This has got me thinking about the impact such investments have – not only on the railway, but for its passengers and the communities who support us.

This investment has been important to build back British and North East jobs and skills. At the time, this contract was the biggest UK rail replacement project. The IEP partnership helped Hitachi to commit and invest in Britain.

It’s also been great for passengers – building such capacity and capability has delivered Britain’s most reliable trains. Just last week we saw 6 Hitachi-built trains in the top 10 most reliable nationwide.

This is what levelling up looks like when it’s done right.

Today I’m proud to be part of the team leading Hitachi Rail’s activities in the UK – 2,500 colleagues from Edinburgh to Penzance.

I’m only one of hundreds of others from my local region to have been offered development opportunities thanks to this incredible partnership.

After all, the IEP contract saw the replacement of Britain’s iconic High Speed Trains (HSTs). These are the same trains on which I started my career, and in the same industry my father worked in all his life.

I grew up in the North East, not far from where our Newton Aycliffe factory stands today.

Six years ago when we started to hire for hundreds of new roles at Newton Aycliffe, we knew we had to hire for values, a desire to learn and a drive to get things done right.

On day one of our recruitment campaign, we had thousands of applicants from a diverse range of industries – but very few from rail. We knew that the commitment to training and development would have to come from us – and that is what we’ve done and keep doing every day.

Over the last 12 years, my personal career journey through Hitachi Rail has taken me from the introduction of the Javelin trains on High Speed 1, across five different departments including Engineering, Procurement, Sales and Projects, and now UK Country Lead.

Clearly I’m biased – but it is this access to opportunities and faith in people’s potential which, in my view, makes Hitachi an employer and brand of choice for anyone wanting to join the railway.

Our team is bigger than just Hitachi Rail. We owe a lot to the local supply chain and community too. Our partnership with the local University Technical College is helping to provide next generation engineering skills for the wider regional economy.

Millfield Composites and Hydram Engineering are just two of 130 local suppliers who have grown with us on this journey, benefitting from tens of millions of pounds of investment. Hydram and Millfield supply interior panels direct from their local manufacturing facilities.

A newer Sunderland-based partner – Hyperdrive – is helping us to build the battery technology that will further decarbonise fleets all around the world.

More broadly, the complexity of such programmes is huge. I want to thank the teams at the DfT, the operating companies and Network Rail – as well as passenger and community groups – for holding us to account and partnering with us through the delivery process.

Hitachi Rail itself is also going through transformative growth.

Today we are a fully integrated global provider of rail solutions across rolling stock, signalling, operation, service & maintenance and turnkey systems – spanning 38 countries.

As the global COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact our lives, we are working hard with customers and governments to provide safe, reliable railways that contribute to the economic, environmental and social success of communities around the world.

Despite the clouds, the successful IEP contract delivery and subsequent investment in the North East’s rail industry is evidence of a new dawn for the region’s manufacturing economy – and I’m proud to be part of it.

Jim Brewin
UK Country Lead
Hitachi Rail

Chamber urges Government to tackle key issues ahead of spending review

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North East England Chamber of Commerce has set out a clear set of demands it wants to see in the Chancellor’s Spending Review on Wednesday, 25 November.

The list covers a range of measures needed to support the region’s business community to recover from Covid challenges as well as specific asks on important issues such as employment and building skills.

Jonathan Walker, Chamber director of policy said: “The Spending Review is an important opportunity for the Chancellor to put into action the commitment to levelling up the country. We are being hard hit on a number of fronts due Covid challenges exacerbating existing problems in our region. There need to be new, substantialinvestment announcements, with clear timescales and delivery routes. Warm words are not enough.”

He stressed the important role the region’s exporters will play if the economy is to bounceback.

Approximately 60% of North East exports are sent into the European Single Market, the highest of all English regions, so the region is disproportionately vulnerable to whatever barriers to trade come from Brexit. To help address business concerns and allow them to adapt to the increased administrative burden expected, there will need to be adequate financial support and guidance.

The Chamber’s view is the current £50m Customs Grants Scheme for upskilling staff, upgrading IT equipment and hiring customs intermediaries is a positive start, but this is set to end in January 2021. With customs declarations expected to increase by 200 million next year, this funding will need to be available for businesses in the medium to long term.

As well as exporters the Chamber want to see support for entrepreneurs, with many people looking for new opportunitiesincluding potentially starting their own business.

The Chamber has long campaigned for more detail on the UK Shared Prosperity Fund to help the region level up. The North Eastnow has the highest unemployment rate, the lowest employment rate and the lowest average hours worked of all British regions. It urges the Chancellor to give clarity on this key investment programme.

Jonathan Walker also highlighted the importance of connectivity. He said: “The transport and aviation sectors have been particularly hit by Covid and the guidance on working from home. We need to ensure that the region retains its connections to help us develop opportunities.Digital connectivity is also increasingly important for businesses so investment in quality digital infrastructure will be essential.

“We need to see the Department for Transport promoting projects that meet the Government’s ‘levelling up agenda’, this must be a central plank of the Government’s investment creating jobs, more resilient networks and investment opportunities.”

Over recent years, Further Education has faced some of the largest cuts in the education sector. In the last decade, per-student funding has fallen by 12% in colleges and 23% in sixth forms, whilst funding into adult education has fallen by 45% in real terms. Successive years of disinvestment in the further education sector has been acutely felt within the North East, with 50% of pupils in the region progressing into an apprenticeship or classroom-based learning post-16 at an FE college compared to 39% in the South East and just 26% in London.

Jonathan Walker said: “Our region’s recovery from the economic fallout of Covid-19 will rely on a well-funded and well-resourced Further Education system which can deliver the widescale retraining and reskilling necessary to help adults into employment, as well as ensure all young people have the skills needed to enter into a much more competitive labour market. Therefore, it is vital Government commits to its pledges to level up the skills system and announces a plan for skills which includes locally led reskilling programmes as well as long-term funding increases for Further Education institutions.”